Historian Niall Ferguson on Trump’s tariffs, Ukraine, and China

Historian Niall Ferguson sits down with Margaret Hoover to assess the first 100 days of President Trump’s second term and the challenges that lie ahead for the White House.

Ferguson, a senior fellow at the Hoover Institution, contrasts Trump with FDR and considers whether his early actions will have lasting impact. He also explains why he sees Trump 2.0 as “Richard Nixon’s revenge.”

Ferguson criticizes Trump’s efforts to end the war in Ukraine and his sweeping use of tariffs that have rattled the global economy. He also questions Trump’s strategy on China and warns of a potential showdown over Taiwan.

As a conservative and a former professor at Harvard, Ferguson reacts to the Trump administration’s assault on Harvard and other universities, and he explains why the president needs to remember that he is “not a king.”

Support for “Firing Line for Margaret Hoover” is provided by Robert Granieri, Vanessa and Henry Cornell, The Fairweather Foundation, Peter and Mark Kalikow, Cliff and Laurel Asness, The Meadowlark Foundation, The Beth and Ravenel Curry Foundation, Charles R. Schwab, The Marc Haas Foundation, Katharine J. Rayner, Damon Button, Craig Newmark Philanthropies, The Philip I Kent Foundation, Annie Lamont through The Lamont Family Fund, The Susan Rasinski McCaw Fund, Cheryl Cohen Effron and Blair Effron, and Al and Kathy Hubbard. Corporate funding is provided by Stephens Inc.